The world once again commemorated the International Day of Peace on Sunday, September 21, 2025. Amidst the torrent of global conflict, thousands of new students from the University of Muhammadiyah Surabaya (UMSurabaya) chose a different way to express hope.

Not with weapons, but with brushes and colors. Together, thousands of new students painted a message of peace on a large wall called The Wall of Peace. This symbolic act affirmed the younger generation's refusal to live in the shadow of war and violence.

The ongoing conflicts in various parts of the world—Palestine–Israel, Ukraine–Russia, Pakistan–India, Syria, Afghanistan, and Thailand–Cambodia—provided a strong backdrop for the birth of this peaceful message.

M. Febriyanto Firman Wijaya, the Steering Committee of this year's MOX, emphasized that this action was not merely a ceremonial activity, but rather a form of character development for new students. Riyan stated that this moment was used to echo the message of peace and global sustainability to the international community, precisely on September 21, the International Day of Peace.

Riyan wants new UMSurabaya students to understand from the outset that knowledge is not just for themselves, but also for humanity.

"The Wall of Peace is a symbol that thousands of new students choose to nurture their lives with peace, not conflict amidst ongoing conflicts around the world," he said.

Riyan explained that in this painting activity, the students were divided into several groups, each given an issue related to the theme of peace: the Palestine-Israel Conflict, the Ukraine-Russia Conflict, the Pakistan-India Conflict, the Syria Conflict, the Afghanistan Conflict, and the Thailand-Cambodia War.

"Then, they were given the freedom to visualize messages of peace based on the issues they were given," Riyan explained.

According to Riyan, while conflicts in various countries continue to claim victims, UMSurabaya students choose to voice messages of peace through art and canvas.

"This is proof that the younger generation has the courage to speak up for peace, even though the world is often filled with violence. Through the Wall of Peace, thousands of new UMSurabaya students are not only creating color, but also making history: marking a commitment that peace must be fought for together," he emphasized.

Nur Elza Tripsetyani, a member of Group 34, explained that her group created a visual for the Thailand-Cambodia peace initiative, depicting a temple that is being fought over by the two countries.

"We used black as the background color, with a visual of the temple, the flags of the two countries, and a message of peace," she said.

With this visual, her team wanted to highlight the locations of the conflicts between the two countries and include a message of peace that should also be implemented in Indonesia.